Taiwan shares end down led by tech stocks after U.S. losses

Taipei, Dec. 30 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan closed lower Monday as tech losses on American markets at the end of last week led to the selling of large cap electronics stocks, dealers said.

Turnover remained thin as some foreign institutional investors remained away from the market for the New Year's Day holiday, making it hard for the market to rally, dealers said.

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark weighted index, ended down 85.48 points, or 0.37 percent, at 23,190.20 after moving between 23,159.70 and 23,331.67. Turnover totaled NT$266.62 billion (US$8.13 billion), compared with NT$292.62 billion on Friday.

The market opened down 1.42 points and remained within a narrow trading range until selling picked up in the afternoon, sending the Taiex into negative territory by the end of the session, dealers said.

The electronics sector lost ground Monday, falling 0.42 percent, and the semiconductor sub-index fell 0.27 percent after the tech-heavy Nasdaq index in the United States tumbled 1.49 percent on Friday, dealers said.

"The Taiex was again guided by U.S. markets, with electronics stocks largely weaker," Concord Securities analyst Kerry Huang said.

"As many foreign institutional investors have not returned, turnover was light, leaving the Taiex in consolidation."

Tech stocks

In the electronics sector, smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. lost 0.70 percent to close at NT$1,420.00, and IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. dropped 0.91 percent to end at NT$163.50.

Also, application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designer Alchip Technologies Ltd. shed 3.31 percent to close at NT$3,215.00.

"Fortunately, TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.) appeared resilient, preventing the Taiex from falling further," Huang said.

Contract chipmaker TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock in the local market, ended unchanged at NT$1,090.00, off a low of NT$1,085.00.

After American AI chip designer Nvidia Corp. lost 2.03 percent on Friday, iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., which also rolls out AI servers, lost 0.80 percent to close at NT$185.00.

Quanta Computer Inc., another AI server maker, dropped 1.03 percent to end at NT$288.00.

Old economy industries

Non-tech stocks largely came under pressure with Formosa Plastics Corp. falling 4.05 percent to close at NT$35.50, and Nan Ya Plastics Corp. shedding 2.90 percent to end at NT$30.10 amid lingering worries over a global petrochemicals supply glut.

Elsewhere in the old economy sector, food brand Uni-President Enterprises Corp. fell 1.09 percent to close at NT$81.90, and cooking oil supplier Great Wall Enterprise Co. lost 0.95 percent to end at NT$51.90.

While the financial sector lost 0.21 percent, King's Town Bank rose 3.73 percent to close at NT$51.90 after SinoPac Financial Holding Co., which lost 1.91 percent to end at NT$23.15, agreed to acquire the bank for almost NT$60 billion.

"If local investment trust firms buy shares tomorrow to dress up their books for the whole year, the Taiex could climb out of the doldrums without large foreign institutional participation," Huang said.

According to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$6.70 billion in shares on the market Monday.